Chiles Rellenos Breakfast Strata with Optional Chorizo

If there’s one word I’ve always found synonymous with Mother’s Day (other than “love” of course), it’s “brunch.” It’s the perfect way to celebrate mom – arguably, brunch is the best type of meal pretty much ever anyway (aside from dessert). Plus, if you’re into mimosas, brunch gives you an excuse to drink way too early in the day.

Now that I’m a mom myself, though, I’m finding I don’t really care all that much about brunch. At least not at this moment. Maybe it’s because I am sitting here typing while blurry-brained from too many up-and-down nights with the tyke lately, but all I want for Mother’s Day is a couple of extra uninterrupted hours of sleep. That would be heaven.

Actually … a couple of extra hours of sleep and then waking up to this chiles rellenos breakfast strata. That would be utter perfection.

So, guys. Seriously. I honestly think this recipe is one of the best I’ve ever come up with. First of all, it comes together in a cinch. Beat the eggs, milk and spices in one bowl. Grate the cheese into another. Open up the cans of chilies and cut them in half. Cut the crusts off of some bread. And then layer. If you’re adding the optional chorizo to all or half, it’s just one more easy step of browning and draining, then adding that to the layers too.

It assembles in no time the night before, then sits in the refrigerator getting all perfect and delicious so that all you have to do is whip it out the next morning, plop it in the oven for awhile, and then serve.

I wholeheartedly believe overnight breakfast casseroles are the best thing to ever to happen to holiday mornings. They take no time out of your busy morning, they’re hearty and scrumptious, and the leftovers make an awesome lunch or dinner the next day.

I’m a huge fan of both the savory (egg) and sweet (french toast) versions, and have made a gazillion varieties of both over the years.

Lay half the chilies flat in the bottom of the baking dish (about 6 chili halves). Lay four slices of bread over the chiles. Pour half the egg mixture over the top of the bread and chilies. Top with half the cheese. Repeat layers: chilies, bread, eggs, and cheese. Sprinkle evenly with a few quick dashes of smoked paprika.

Lay half the chilies in the bottom of the baking dish (about 3 chili halves each). Lay four slices of bread over the chiles (2 slices of bread per dish). Sprinkle half of the sausage over the meaty version. Top each with about 1/2 cup of the egg mixture. Sprinkle about 1/3 cup of cheese onto each. Repeat layers: chilies, bread, sausage on the sausage version, the rest of the eggs divided evenly between, and the remaining cheese. Sprinkle with a couple of pinches of smoked paprika.

Lay half the chilies flat in the bottom of the baking dish (about 6 chili halves). Lay four slices of bread over the chiles. Sprinkle on half the browned chorizo. Pour half the egg mixture over the top of the bread, chilies, and sausage. Top with half the cheese. Repeat layers: chilies, bread, sausage, eggs, and cheese. Sprinkle evenly with a few quick dashes of smoked paprika.

Continue to “Refrigerate overnight and then bake” step below.

Refrigerate overnight and then bake

Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight, or for at least three hours.

In the morning, uncover and bake at 325 degrees for 40 – 50 minutes, until the strata is puffy, golden, and no longer jiggles in the middle.

Ooooh, I am in love with the idea of an overnight breakfast casserole. Seriously, not having to deal with breakfast in the morning when everyone’s crying for it would be awesome. I need to work on that, haha. This looks delicious! I love chiles rellenos!

I made this for Mother’s Day and it received raves!! It was requested for another family brunch and I decided to be ambitious and roast & peel my own chiles. Not doing that again! The canned are just as good and waaaay less work.

This looks delicious! Plan on making it Friday night for Saturday breakfast. Just a note – it looks like the number formatting may be a bit off on the instructions. The chorizo steps are both #4 instead of #1 🙂

We LOVED it! My carnivore said it was, and I quote, “off the chain”. It’s hard to get him to say something is more than “decent”, so this is a big success in our household 🙂 My veggie version was amaaazing, too. Mmm, thinking about it is making me excited to get home and eat leftovers!

Ahh, I love it! Thanks for letting me know. I seriously LOVE this recipe and am really kind of proud of it but sometimes, especially with the recipes I really love, I quietly worry, “is it just me? Will everyone else hate it?!” So, thank you. 🙂

Hmm. I think it could still be delicious with tortillas (maybe torn into strips?) but I do think it would be a different dish. The bread is key to stratas – it makes them light, fluffy, almost souffle-like. Tortillas wouldn’t do the same thing. But if you try it, do let us know how it turns out! I’m curious now. 🙂

I tried it this weekend with the tortillas. I laid them whole in the casserole in place of the bread and put it in the refrig overnight. The next morning, I baked it as directed and it came out delicious! Everyone (including 3 picky teens) loved it. My husband rates dishes with a “Signature” rating as the highest. He said this was almost Signature which is a pretty high rating! We had leftovers and everyone woke up the next morning looking for them! I will make again and maybe add more tortillas and more chilies. Thanks for the great recipe.

Assembled this last night, wrapped tightly and refrigerated. Baked this and just removed it from the oven. It LOOKS Scrumptious!!! Can’t wait for the First Bite~ Thank You (I Love Chili Rellenos so this will be a treat)

I made one of each for a recent Bridesmaid Brunch. The only change was a whole wheat white bread vs plain white. I was in Texas so I was able to get my hands on some good Mexican chorizo. The end result was delicious and received great reviews. I was a bit hesitant about the bread layers but it works perfect. I loved that I could make this the night before and pop it in the oven the next morning. I served a strawberry/orange fruit salad and a white rhubarb sangria plus some store bought banana and lemon breads. I also had avocado slices, pico, sour cream, red & verdi salsa and chopped cilantro for toppings. Thanks for the recipe. I will make again.

Good question – I’ve never had that problem in all my years of making overnight breakfast casseroles. If you’re concerned, you might want to bring them out of the fridge 30 minutes before putting them into the oven.

Made this for Easter this year with Chorizo. I actually forgot the second layer of bread but all turned out ok. I love this recipe, especially with a little avocado and salsa. The overnight recipe made Easter morning a breeze. Will definitely make again.